reeva’s friend:

As Oscar Pistorius is sentenced to six years for the murder of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, Closer speaks to her close friend Kerry Smith…

“She was robbed of her dream to become a mum”

ast week, South L African Paralympic “hero” Oscar Pistorius was finally handed a six-year prison sentence for the horrific murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine’s Day in 2013.

Model and paralegal Reeva, 29, was found dead after being shot four times through a locked toilet door at the athlete’s home in South Africa.

A VIBRANT PERSON

Pistorius always maintained he believed he was firing at an intruder, while his girlfriend of around four months lay in bed. And despite overwhelming evidence, he was sensationally cleared of murder and initially found guilty of manslaughter in September 2014, before the verdict was overturned on appeal last December. While he’s received six years for murder, he’s likely to be released in half the time.

Mum-of-two Kerry, 39 – who lives in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, was a uni friend of Reeva’s and is mourning the loss of a life she never had. She says: “Reeva was so vibrant. She loved kids and they loved her. It was her greatest wish to be a mum and I could tell by the way she played with my daughter that she’d be a great mother – but Pistorius robbed her of that dream.

“I’m relieved justice has been done after what he did. It wasn’t just a tragic accident and everyone now knows Pistorius for what he really is: a killer.

“Pistorius tried to win sympathy in court by walking around on his stumps, which is laughable. He should have got at least 10 years in prison.”

JUSTICE AT LAST

Reeva and Kerry met in 2002 while studying law together. Kerry says: “When we met, Reeva had just come out of a difficult relationship and I was in a volatile relationship with the man I’d married when I was just 21. We were very close and I felt I could confide in her.”

Reeva moved to Johannesburg to pursue a modelling career and the pair lost touch for a few years. Then, in 2008, shortly after Kerry split with her ex, Reeva messaged Kerry on Facebook. Kerry says: “She apologised for not keeping in touch. After that, we spoke weekly over the phone or on email. She was in a new relationship with businessman Warren Lahoud and I’d found a new man, too – we were both in a good place.” So Kerry was shocked to learn about Reeva’s relationship with Pistorius in 2012 in the papers. She says: “I thought Warren was the man she’d marry. The next thing I knew, she was dating Oscar – it happened so quickly, not even her parents had met him.”

Before Kerry had an opportunity to speak to Reeva about Pistorius, the athlete had shot her dead and the whole world knew Reeva’s name.

Kerry says: “When I heard the news from a colleague at work, I felt numb. We’d spoken only weeks before and she’d been in good spirits.”

For Kerry, the consequent trial that led to the manslaughter conviction was especially hard to bear. She says: “Watching the trial on TV, I thought Pistorius was full of lies from the very beginning, and seeing the brutal images of Reeva’s injuries were harrowing – I broke down.

“Now, justice has finally been done and I hope we can all have some closure and remember Reeva for the beautiful person she was – not just a victim.”